Through laughter yoga, Kimmins has witnessed the
disappearance of chronic pain, as the hormones released help
muscles relax and provide a host of other benefits.
“We had one lady who would have to get up every morning
slowly, in stages. She’d have to bend her legs, then sit up, then move
her legs over the side of the bed, then finally stand. With laughter
yoga, she found she was able to get up in the morning without these
steps - and without thinking about it!” shared Kimmins.
As a past camp counsellor and director, I’ve always used
laughter in team building exercises, both with adults and children.
Kimmins explained it well: “laughter is a natural energy - it goes
where it’s needed. It will reach and impact everyone in the room,
in one way or another,” she said.
We’ve all seen that - just hearing laughter can brighten your
mood, even if you aren’t connected to the occurrence itself.
“Laughter doesn’t discriminate. Everybody should be laughing
every day,” Kimmins said.
About a year after my first round in a wheelchair, I had the
opportunity to meet and listen to Susan Minns, a humourist and
motivational speaker from London, Ontario. Minns, who died a few
years ago, was a former early childhood educator who lived with
multiple sclerosis. She celebrated being confined to a wheelchair
by wearing red stilettos every day. As a motivational speaker, often
referred to as the lady in the red shoes, Minns encouraged everyone
to be dancing inside their heads, even if they couldn't dance for
real.
Getting to hear Minns speak came at a perfect time for me.
Walking and moving was still tough, and everyone at the
presentation who knew me knew what I had been through. So
many glances, nudges and winks were shot in my direction,
eventually Minns stopped her speech to check something with me.
"Everyone kept looking at you so often, I wanted to look under
the table to see if you had legs," she said. If there was ever a day I
came close to pee-your-pants laughter, that was it.
Minns taught me that there is always an opportunity to laugh,
to do something outrageously funny - and that it can be as simple
as a pair of shoes needed to look on the bright side. When else can
you wear what she described as "smoking-hot high
heels" with no di ͍